CY Fest 2026 Canceled After Mass Band Exodus Over Misconduct Allegations

The inevitable has occurred: CY Fest 2026, the LA punk/metal/hardcore festival, is officially canceled. This follows the withdrawal of at least 20 bands from the lineup due to serious sexual misconduct allegations leveled against the promoter.

Scheduled for March 28 at the Belasco, CY Fest 2026 boasted a lineup including reunited Subhumans, Eyehategod, Pig Destroyer, Dropdead, Big Boy, Rotting Out, and Mess. The unraveling began when the Instagram account @Feral_bonobos, associated with an online feminist group, circulated numerous sexual misconduct allegations against promoter Ignacio Rodriguera, also known as Nacho Corrupted, urging a boycott of the festival.
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Rodriguera announced his temporary departure from the festival on Monday to address the allegations legally, which he denies. Scotty Heath, owner of Tankcrimes Records, briefly stepped in to salvage the event, but withdrew a day later, overwhelmed by the situation. The Subhumans and many other bands, including Iron Lung, Tørsö, Apartment 213, Tripas Sangrientas, Resistant Culture, Triste, Dropdead, Antichrist Demoncore, Hell Fire, Weekend Nachos, Ghoul, Haggus, Hong Kong Fuck You, Bomber, Dr. Know, and Mess, continued to pull out.
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The festival's Instagram account officially announced the cancellation Thursday night, stating that all tickets would be automatically refunded within 24-48 hours. Vendors were instructed to contact the organizers for reimbursement details, with a promise of updates regarding the festival's preshows.

These preshows, slated for the Regent Theater, featured The Partisans (March 25 & 27), Pig Destroyer (March 26), and Dropdead (March 29), also promoted by Rodriguera. Initially, the Regent Theater intended to proceed with these shows, pledging 100% of the proceeds to the Downtown Women’s Center and Downtown Women’s Action Coalition. The venue released the following statement:

> At The Regent Theater, the safety and well-being of our patrons, staff, and performers are our highest priorities. We do not condone sexual assault or any behavior that compromises the safety of our community. We maintain a zero-tolerance policy toward any form of harassment or misconduct.
>
> In order to accommodate bands traveling from out of town and the fans excited to see them, the following shows are still scheduled to take place:

>
> 3/25 - The Partisans
> 3/26 - Pig Destroyer
> 3/27 - The Partisans
> 3/29 - Dropdead
>
> In light of recent allegations and in an effort to support those impacted by gender-based violence, we will donate 100% of proceeds from these shows to the Downtown Women’s Center and Downtown Women’s Action Coalition.
>
> The Downtown Women’s Center and Downtown Women’s Action Coalition are vital resources in our neighborhood dedicated to serving women experiencing homelessness and survivors of trauma. We stand with our community and are committed to being a space where everyone feels safe.
>
> For those who would prefer to have their tickets refunded, we have opened the refund window for all of these events. Please inquire directly with Ticketmaster to start that process. If you are concerned about safety or any other issues in attending these events, please reach out directly to info@regentdtla.com and we’ll make sure you’re taken care of.

The Partisans added:

> Oh well just deleted a long post in regards these gigs, and then we get this sent to us from The Regent Theatre. So the situation is the CY Fest on March 28 is cancelled and the two pre shows are still on. Seems like it’s going in the right direction at last. But we are truly sorry about all this, it was nothing we wanted to be dragged into, our flight tickets were booked months ago and we were getting messages from fans from all over the USA who have booked hotels etc to see us etc who want to see us. We did question the promoter about it (the allegations) and he said he was taking legal action against his accusers and handing over the event to another promoter so we thought ok. Anyway we will keep you updated. #shitshow #thepartisan

If you or someone you know has undergone sexual abuse, please visit rainn.org or contact the National Sexual Assault Helpline at 1-800-656-4673.

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